Nikon is one of the biggest companies in the photography industry. The company produces cameras that fall into every price range imaginable from super expensive professional grade cameras to cheap point-and-shoot offerings selling for around $55. However, Nikon president Makoto Kimura recently told Bloomberg in an interview that while the sales of smartphones are booming, sales of cameras are slumping.

“The number of people taking snapshots is exploding by use of smartphones that sold 750 million or so last year and are still growing,” Kimura said. “We’ve centralized our ideas around cameras but can change our approach to offer products to that bigger market.”

While Kimura didn't go into detail on Nikon's earnings, he did say that the company's Q1 earnings estimates were "fairly low" and that the official Q1 results would probably be close to predictions or "a little short." Nikon was previously predicting a 53% gain in net income for its fiscal year started on April 1.

Nikon predicts that the compact camera market will shrink 12% during the current financial year. However, the company believes that high-end models with changeable lenses will gain 9%. Kimura wouldn't get specific, but did say some things that seemed to indicate Nikon is considering going in a different direction.

“We want to create a product that will change the concept of cameras,” said Kimura. “It could be a non-camera consumer product.” Kimura declined to specify if the camera maker was looking into the smartphone market. Kimura did say that Nikon was considering an expansion into the production of medical devices with the goal of creating revenue in the medical realm within three years, areas where both Sony and Olympus have found success.

Competitor Sony also acknowledged last year that the point-and-shoot market is shrinking as smartphones continue to explode in popularity.